Pressure-regulator for gar-brakes



(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

H. I-IINGKLEY.

PRESSURE REGULATOR FOR GAR BRAKES. No. 448,234. Patented Mar. 17, 1891.

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' (No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

H. HINCKLEY.

PRESSURE REGULATOR FOR GAR BRAKES.

No. 448,234. Patented Mar. 17,1891.

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HOIVARD HINOKLEY, OF TRENTON, NEIV JERSEY.

PRESSURE REGULATOR FOR CAR=BRAKES.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 448,234, dated March 17, 1891.

Application filed November 5, 1889. Serial No. 329,317. (No model.)

Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Automatic Pressure-Regulators for Car-Brakes; andI do hereby declare the following to be afull, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable to others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

In the practical application of car-brake systems, especially in automatic or other power-actuated systems, it is desirable that the maximum pressure of the brake-shoes on the car or wheels should be varied in accordance with the weight and consequent momentum of the car.

In an application filed by me on the 13th day of August, 1889, SerialNo. 320,557,I have shown, described,and claimed such a pressureregulating mechanism broadly, as well as in combination with the particular type of powerbrake to which it is applied. The kind of 2 5 brake, however, in connection with which this regulating device is there shown and described is only one of the many different systems to which it is applicable.

My present invention has also for its object the automatic regulation of the pressure of the brakeshoes upon the car-wheels proportionately to the varying weight and momentum of the car under dilferent loads, and, while in the application of the invention to 3 5 the kind of power-brake shown and described and claimed in my aforesaid application this regulation of the pressure is obtained by antomatically shortening up the connection between the brake-actuating mechanism and 0 the brake-shoes as the car is depressed by the increasing weight of the load, in the present application of the invention the same result is obtained by automatically varying the leverage of the brake-applying mechanism.

I To this end the invention here consists generally in mounting the brake-actuating mechanism in movable relation with the primary lever of the system and so connecting it with the regulating-lever claimed in the aforesaid application that as the car-body is depressed by the increasing weight of the load the position of the actuating mechanism shall be shifted so as to exert a greater leverage on the system in proportion as weight is added to the car by increasing the load.

In the annexed drawings, forming part of this specification, Figure 1 is a bottom View of a car equipped with my invention. Fig. 2 is a detail of the device for automatically shifting the position of the brake-actuating mechanism, and Fig. 3 is a detail showing in perspective the movable brake-cylinder and its track.

Referring to the several views, 1 denotes the air-reservoir; 2, the cylinder; 3, the piston-rod; 4, the primary brake-lever; 5, the rod connecting the latter with a similar lever near the other end of the car, (not shown;) 6, the rod or link leading from the primary lever to the brake-beam lever, and 7 a rod leading to the hand-actuating mechanism at the end of the car, by means of which the brakes may be applied by the brakeman. These parts and their arrangement differ in no essential respects from those of the Well-known Westinghouse system, except in the particulars now to be described.

Instead of mounting the brake-cylinder 2 in fixed position under the car, and connecting its piston 3 with the primary lever 4 of the system by a fixed pivot, so that the force of the piston shall be exerted on the lever with a given and unalterable leverage, as in the ordinary way, I mount the cylinder so that: it may be moved back and forth lengthwise of the lever and connect the cylinder piston-rod with the primary lever, so that it may be held in operative engagement therewith as the cylinder is adjusted to different positions along the length of the lever. To permit this the brake-cylinder 2 is detached from the usual fixed air-reservoir 1 and connected therewith by means of a flexible air-pipe 8.

To suitable brackets 9, fixed to the car-body, is secured the transversely-arranged track or rail 10.

Upon one side of the cylinder (whose casingis preferably flattened for that purpose) are mounted in any convenient manner grooved pulleys or anti-friction rollers 11. There are preferably four of these rollers, as shown in Fig. 3; but any preferred number may be used so long as their arrangement is such as to secure a free and easy movement of the cylinder, while at the sam etime maintaining it in proper horizontal position. The rollers are here shown as running on gudgeons having bearings at one end in the cylindercasing and at the other instout iron straps 12, bolted at their ends tothe end fianges of the casing and overlying the pulleys and the rail 10.

The end of the piston-rod 3, instead of be ing secured by a pin or rivet to the lever 4, is forked and straddles the lever, as shown, so

that it may move lengthwise thereon and yetalways be in operative engagement therewith. If desired for easy action, a small anti-friction roller may be mounted in the fork, upon which the lever may run. No substantial alteration is made in the leveritself. Its edge adjacent to the piston is merely by preference made straight, and at its end a nose or projection 13 is provided at one end to limit the movement of the piston-rod and prevent its running off that end of the lever.

To the opposite side of the lever from the piston a rod or is connected; This rod is.

guided by friction-rollers b on one of the carfloor timbers. To this timber is attached a housing for a spring 0, which reacts on the rod a to promptly restore the lever at when the air is exhausted from the cylinder.

As a convenient mechanism for shifting the position of the brake-cylinder I use the following: Into a lug on one side of the cylinder-casing is hooked the end of a stout steel spring 14, its opposite end being connected.

to a bracket 15 or other fixed projection from the car. This spring holds the cylinder 2 normally at one end of the track, a stop being provided at that end, if desired, or the cylinder may abut against the bracket. To a lug on the diametrically opposite side of the cylinder from the spring 14 is attached one end of a flexible connection 15, in this instance consisting of ropes or chains and alink, though it may be a single rope or chain running over suitable pulleys, or it may even consist of a series of rods and levers. This flexible connection is led from the cylinder for some distance in a straight line parallel with the rail 10 to and around a horizontal pulley 16, mounted on one of the timbers of the carbody. Thence it is led to and around another horizontal pulley 17, arranged in any position in relation to the pulley 16 and mounted in like manner on the car-body, preferably in proximity to the truck. From this pulley 16 the connection runs over the top of a vertically-arranged pulley 18, also secured to one of the car-body timbers near the truck and standing in the plane of the periphery of the pulley 17. After passing over this pulley 18 the end of the connection is securely fastened by a clip 19 to the car floor or body or some fixed part thereof.

Upon a part of the trucksnch as the springplank 20, whose height above the rail does not vary with the weight of the car-is pivoted by means of the bracket 21 the vertically-vibrating regulating or take-up lever 22, of substantially the same construction and arrangement as in my application No. 320,557 aforesaid. In the free end of this lever is journaled a pulley 23. Under and around this pulley the connection 15 is led on its way from the vertical pulley 18 to the clip 19,by which its end is attached to the car, the position of the lever' being such that the pulley on its end plays preferably in a vertical plane between the planes of the pulley 18 and the end fastening of the connection.

To a part of the carsuch as the beam or bolster 24, whose position varies vertically as the weight of the load on the car varies the latters positionis secured a corner rub-iron 25. This rub-iron, however, is not essential, it being only necessary that the lever 22 be so pivoted on the truck that the beam or bolster will engage and actuate it in its movements.

The construction and arrangement being as thus described, the operation of the invention is as follows: The position of parts shown by full lines in Fig. 1 is that of an'empty or lightly-loaded car, while the dotted lines show the positions they assume with a heavilyloaded car. The full lines in Fig. 2 also represent the normal position of the regulating lever 22 and its pulley 23 relative to the pulley 18 and the point of attachment of the connection to the car-body when the car is empty or light, the tension of the connection holding the pulley 23 up into practically the same horizontal plane as the pulley 18, and the dotted lines represent their positions when the car is loaded. As the load on the car is increased in weight, the body of the car and the bolster 24 are depressed, but the position of the spring plank 20 on the car-truck remains unaltered. In this depression of the car the corner-iron 25, or the edge of the bolster 24 when no iron is used, depresses the lever 22, so that the lever 23 takes up a certain amount of rope. The end of the rope nearest the pulley being fastened to a fixed partof the car and its other end to the movable brake-cylinder, the cylinder must be shifted in position to permit this take-up in the rope a distance equal to the amount of rope taken up. This movement of the brakecylinder causes the piston-rod 3 to travel lengthwise on the primary lever 4 to a point nearer its end, where it exerts a greater leverage thereon than in the normal position for a light or empty car.

The piston-pressure in this type of brake system may be considered as practically a constant quantity; but in the application of the principle of my automatic pressure-regulating device thereto this pressure is applied to the system with a varying leverage, in creasing as the increasing weight and momentum of the car require increase of pressure of the brake-shoes on the wheels.

It is obvious that the details of construction and arrangement in this invention are IOC susceptible of variation within a wide range, and I do not therefore wish to be understood as limiting my claims to the exact construction shown, holding myself at liberty to make such modifications therein as do not depart from the principle thereof.

I claim- 1. In a car-brake system, the combination of the movable brake-actuating mechanism, the levers and links transmitting power from said actuating mechanism to the brake-shoes, and shifting mechanism intermediate between the brake-actuating mechanism and the carbody, whereby the vertical movement of the car shifts the brake-actuating mechanism lengthwise of the primary lever, so as to vary the point of application of the power to said lever as the vertical position of the car is altered by the varying weight of its load.

2. In a car-brake system, the combination of the brake-actuating mechanism, the connections transmitting power from said actuating mechanism to the brake-shoes, the aircylinder of the actuating mechanism mounted so as to be movable lengthwise of the primary lever of the system, and mechanism whereby the vertical movement of the car is caused to shift the position of said cylinder with respect to the primary lever of the system and thereby vary the leverage with which the brakes are applied.

In a car-brake system, the combination of the brakeactuating mechanism, the connections transmitting power from said mechanism to the brake-shoes, the air-cylinder of the actuating mechanism being movably mounted with relation to the primary lever of the power-transmitting connections, a lever pivoted on the car-truck and arranged to be operated by a part of the car whose position varies with variations in the weight of the load, and aconnection between said lever and the aincylinder, whereby as the car is depressed by the increasing weight of its load the lever is operated to shift the position of the cylinder in relation to the primary lever, so as to exert a greater leverage thereon.

at. In a car-brake system, the combination of the air-reservoir 1, the air-cylinder 2, connected therewith by a flexible air-pipe, the track 10, on which the cylinder is arranged to travel, the primary lever at of the powertransmittingconnections, the regulating-lever 23, pivoted on the cartruck, the flexible connection 15, fastened at one end to the carbody, connected at its other to the movable air-cylinder, and connected with the regulating-lever, so that as said lever is depressed by the lowering of the car under the increasing weight of its load it will draw upon said connection and shift the position of the cylinder lengthwise of the primary lever.

5. In a car-brake system, the combination of the fixed reservoir 1, the movable air-cylinder 2, the transverse track 10, the horizontal pulleys 16 17, the vertical pulley 18, the primary power-transmitting lever 4:, the spring 14, holding the cylinder normally at one end of the track, the flexible connection 15, extending from the side of the cylinder opposite to the spring around the pulleys 16 17 and over the pulley 18 and fastened at its end to the car-bod y, and the regulating-lever 22, carrying the pulley 23 in its free end, under which the flexible connection passes on its way from the pulley 18 to its point of attachment to the car, said lever being arranged to be depressed by the lowering of the car under the weight of its load, so as to draw on said connection and shift the position of the cylinder lengthwise of the primary lever 4t.

6. In a car-brake system, the combination of the fixed reservoir 1, the movable air-cylinder 2, its fork-ended piston-rod 3, the transverse track 10, the horizontal pulleys 16 17, the vertical pulley 18, the power-transmitting lever 4:. having a nose 13 at oneend and a spring 0, acting against the back thereof, the spring lat, holding the cylinder normally at one end of the track, the flexible connection 15, attached to the opposite side of said cylinder and extending around the pulleys 16 17 and over the pulley 18 to a point where it is fastened to the car, and the regulatingdever 22, carrying the pulley 23 at its end, under which the connection is led on its Way from the pulley 18 to its point of attachment to the car, the lever being arranged to be de pressed by the lowering of the car under the increasing Weight of its load, so as to draw on the connection and shift the cylinder along the lever 1.

In testimony whereof I affix mysignature in presence of two witnesses.

HOWARD HINCKLEY.

Witnesses:

JNo. GUILD MUIRHEID, M. HEIDWEILER. 

